Activists – Now I've Heard Everything

The Legacy of American Pro-Palestinian Activist Rachel Corrie

June 27, 2025Bill Thompson

Rachel Corrie grew up in the ’80s and ’90s in Olympia, Washington.

In the early 2000s she joined the pro-Palestinian International Solidarity Movement, or ISM. That’s how she ended up in March 2003 in Rafah in Gaza. She and other ISM volunteers were there to protest the Israeli demolition of Palestinian homes.

On March 16, 2003, Rachel positioned herself as a human shield in front of one home, and was killed by an Israeli armored bulldozer that crushed her.

Rachel Corrie became an international symbol, a hero to many, a martyr to some

Back home in Olympia, to her parents Craig and Cindy Corrie, Rachel was still their little girl.

After Rachel’s death Her Diaries, journals, and other writings were published in a book called Let Me Stand Alone.

Craig and Cindy Corrie went out to promote the book, and that’s when I met them

So here now from 2008 Craig and Cindy Corrie.

Rachel Corrie would have been 46 now.

Krist Novoselic: The Rock Star / Political Activist On How to Fix Our Democracy

June 18, 2025Bill Thompson

It’s been almost 40 years since bass guitarist Krist Novoselic and his buddy Kurt Cobain formed a band they called Nirvana Novoselic wound up in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a result.

He continued his music for over 20 years after the end of Nirvana.

But he also had a deep and abiding interest in politics and democracy. And that’s how he came to write a book in 2004, that he called Of Grunge and Government.

His publisher offered me a few minutes with him in the fall of 2004, and, being the father of teenage daughters who loved Nirvana, I couldn’t say no.

So here now, from 2004, Krist Novoselic.

Krist Novoselic turned 60 last month. Last year he founded the Cascade Party of Washington.

Beyond “Dead Man Walking”: Helen Prejean’s Fight for Justice

June 18, 2025Bill Thompson

For more than 30 years 1 of the most vocal and effective campaigners against capital punishment in the U.S. has been a Roman Catholic nun from New Orleans.

But until 1993 few people in the general public had ever heard of Sister Helen Prejean. That changed when she wrote a book called Dead Man Walking, which was later made into a highly acclaimed movie.

Leveraging her newfound influence, Prejean pushed forward with her campaign against the death penalty. She helped establish the Moratorium Campaign, and she started a group to counsel families of murder victims.

One major part of her effort has been to prevent executions of innocent defendants, who frequently are swept up in a dizzying array of legal technicalities that overlook their humanity.

In 2004 Prejean wrote a second book, called The Death of Innocents, drawing on the stories of two men she counseled who were executed despite what she believed was their innocence.

She and I talked about that book in 2005, the first time we had met since 1993.

So here now, from 2005, sister Helen Prejean.

Sister Helen Prejean Is 86 now. Based in New Orleans she continues to travel the country campaigning against the death penalty.

Terri Irwin’s Life With Steve Irwin — And The World’s Most Exotic Wildlife

May 14, 2025Bill Thompson

Perhaps no person in modern times has purposely sought out the world’s most exotic – and dangerous – wildlife quite like Australia’s Steve Irwin, also known as the Crocodile Hunter.

Whether it was crocodiles, venomous snakes, lions or elephants, Irwin wanted close encounters.

His companion on many of his “meet-and-greets” was his wife Terri. More than just spouses, they were partners as ambassadors to the animal kingdom.

But of course, as we know, in 2006 a stingray brought a sudden and tragic end to Steve’s life when he was just 44.

The following year Terri Irwin published a memoir, celebrating her and Steve’s life together. The book was called Steve And Me, and when Terri went on a book tour to promote it I had a chance to sit down for a few minutes with her

So here now, from 2007, Terri Irwin.

Terri Irwin is 60 now. She’s a naturalized Australian citizen, and along with the couple’s two children still operate Australia Zoo.

The Fear Gripping America’s Shrinking Middle Class — An Exploration by Barbara Ehrenreich

April 6, 2025Bill Thompson

The wealth gap between America’s 1% and all the rest of us is wide and getting wider. But it didn’t start with us.

At least, not all of us.

In 1989, author and political activist Barbara Ehrenreich highlighted the growing struggles of not just the poor, but the middle class. And in particular, the professional middle class, the “white collar” middle class.

What is startling and sobering is that this 36 year old interview foreshadowed so much of what our current economy looks like.

More below video:

Get your copy of Barbara Ehrenreich’s book

And of course, in this interview when Barbara Ehrenreich talks about the young people entering the workforce: Gen X, she’s talking about you

Barbara Ehrenreich’s book was called Fear of Falling. I was in my mid-30s when I did this interview and it hit home for me.

So here now, from 1989, Barbara Ehrenreich.

Barbara Ehrenreich died in 2022. She was 81

Elaine Brown And The Evolution of The Black Panther Party

February 26, 2025Bill Thompson

When Huey Newton and Bobby seale formed the Black Panther Party in 1966, it was largely a very masculine male oriented organization. It was a year before it had its first female member.

And then in 1968 a 25 year old woman from Philadelphia joined the black Panther party. Her name was Elaine Brown.

It was largely through her efforts that the party became more female-friendly, and in 1971 she succeeded Eldridge Cleaver as the party’s information minister.

When Huey Newton fled to Cuba in 1974 to avoid prosecution in the US, he appointed Brown chairwoman of the party.

More below video:

But the party continued to struggle with male versus female rivalries, and when Newton returned in 1977, Brown had had enough, and left the party.

The Black Panthers dissolved in 1982.

Fast forward to 1993, and Elaine Browne wrote A Memoir called A Taste of Power. That’s when I met her.

So here now, from 1993, Elaine Brown.

Elaine Brown will be 82 next week.

She currently heads Oakland & the World Enterprises, an organization she founded in 2014.

‘The Birds’ Made Her Famous. Rescuing Wildlife Is Now Tippi Hedren’s Life

December 16, 2024December 14, 2024Bill Thompson

Tippi Hedren’s career began with teenage modeling, as she appeared often in popular magazines.

Later she appeared in TV commercials, and one ofd them caught the eye of someone famous and powerful.

One day a Hollywood agent called with the magic words: “Alfred Hitchcock wants to put you under contract.”

Hedren then starred in Hitchcok’s “The Birds” in 1963 and “Marnie” in 1964.

While she was shooting two movies in Africa in 1969,she realized a new life mission: animal rescue.

By 1983 Hedren had established a nonprofit foundation, and had built a wildlife sanctuary of her own, which she named the Shambala Preserve.

In 1985 Hedren published a book about her sanctuary, and the animals she curfates. Her book was called The Cats of Shambala.

I met her while she was on a book tour, and I relished the opportunity to ask her about Hitchcock.

So here now, from 1985, Tippi Hedren.

Tippi Hedren will be 95 next month. She remains in charge of Shambala.

Just Call Him Mike: “MAS*H” Star and Activist Mike Farrell

December 2, 2024November 30, 2024Bill Thompson

Some people become actors. Some become activists. And some, like Mike Farrell, become both.

As a young boy growing up in Hollywood, where his father worked as a carpenter at a movie studio, Farrell was drawn to entertainment early on.

But his home life also ignited a passionate empathy that became a hallmark of his life.

After years of small or supporting acting roles here and there,m Farrell hit the jackpot when he joined the cast of the hit CBS show “MAS*H” in 1975.

Not only did he become one of the most popular cast members, it also afforded him a new public visibility for his activism.

In 2007 Farrell was persuaded to write a memoir, a book he titled Just Call Me Mike. That’s when I first met him.

So here now, from 2007, Mike Farrell.

Mike Farrell is 85 now. And still working.

How Leymah Gbowee Led a Women’s Movement That Ended a Civil War

November 22, 2024November 21, 2024Bill Thompson

If men start the wars, is it up to the women to end them

At the start of the 21st century, the West African nation of Liberia was embroiled in its second civil war. The war left thousands dead, many thousands of others displaced

A young single mother named Leymah Gbowee had enough, and formed a women’s group to press for peace,

Her movement quickly grew, and its peaceful, non-violent efforts – including a controversial “sex strike” – produced a peace agreement in 2003.

And that, in turn, led to the election of the first modern-day female elected head of state in Africa, ElLen Johnson Sirleaf.

For their work, Gbowee and Sirleaf shared the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize. That same year Gbowee wrote a memoir called Mighty Be Our Powers. That’s when I met her.

So here now, from 2011, Leymah Gbowee,

Leymah Gbowee is 52 now. And Liberia, although still facing many challenges, continues to make strides toward full democracy.

Actress Gloria Loring’s Fight Against Diabetes

November 1, 2024October 31, 2024Bill Thompson

Gloria Loring started singing professionally in 1960. After years of modest success in that endeavor, in 1980 she joined the cast of NBC’s “Days Of Our Lives,” playing Liz Chandler, a character she played for the next six years.

But if you don’t remember her for that, perhaps you know this song” Loring and husband Alan Thicke wrote that song, and she sang it.

About that same time, though, Loring was stunned to learn that her four-year-old son Brennan was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes,

Loring then devoted her time to learning all she could about how to treat, and hopefully prevent, diabetes,.

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Today we’re revisiting my 2006 interview with her, when she wrote her book Living With Type 2 Diabetes, a guide for those with the disease and those close to them.

So here now, from 2006, Gloria Loring.

Gloria Loring will be 78 next month. She is a spokesperson for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.